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*Chapter 75 - Unholy Contracts and Subclasses
🕑 Added 2021-09-04 20:06:58 +0000 UTCChapter 75 – Unholy Contracts and Subclasses
The old man looked like a fanatic. He was growing agitated yet excited simultaneously and switched between the two emotions every couple of seconds.
“Why did you lie to me about what was here?” Trey asked, still not completely convinced about everything and for good reason. They’d each lost a good number of their own getting here.
Gorthomal merely sneered Rivia’s way. “I know you have that hag in your ear, preaching lies about Alkir’s greatness. It is a farce and nothing more. I was worried though that you’d be tricked by her if I were to let on what truly lay ahead… she’d have time to persuade you, to lead you astray.”
Rivia protested by gripping Trey’s arm tightly and sneering back, her usually beautiful features darkening in rage. “Alkir has chosen him as Eleknar’s Heir! You know it in your heart that Eleknar wishes to be reunited with the dark goddess! Do not try to pull the veil over Trey’s eyes in his ignorance of our ways, summoner!”
She turned her gaze to Trey and softened her purple features underneath the hood of her cloak, letting her grip loosen at the same time after realizing how hard she’d been gripping. “Master… do not listen to this blasphemer. He said it himself! That is a soul-binding contract! They will offer you power and riches and keep you as a slave!”
“LIES!” Gorthomal shouted and pointed a quivering finger at the woman to snarl indecipherable words under his breath.
“It is true!” Rivia continued anxiously as her grip tightened again in worry. “He and his god Omastein are trying to pull you into their flock with promises of powers and riches that will be a paltry amount to what your potential will evolve into once Eleknar bonds and fully awakens! They know this! Look at how desperate he is to get you to sign that wretched document!”
Trey glanced over. No doubt about it, Gorthomal did seem a little desperate.
“Eleknar is known as one of the greater evils for a reason… he is on par with the greatest lords of Hell and once had thousands of legions at his command!” Rivia placed a hand on Trey’s face and with pleading eyes kept his gaze locked onto hers. “Alkir will not demand this of you! Eleknar is already a friend of the dark goddess and would not chain you and ask you to sell your soul for meager amounts of power! Do not be stupid!”
“She DARES to call the Heir stupid!?” Gorthomal let out a hardy laugh and took a step forward, putting the quill back into his pocket and eagerly pressing his finger against the glowing, flickering parchment. “Listen not to that whore. She is desperate to get you back into the clutches of Alkir, knowing full well that Alkir only has her own interests at heart. It is true that Omastein wants a soul-binding contract to serve him, but if you look at the parchment that’s all it is. It has no negatives, only the promise that you will not worship other gods aside from him. That you will help him do his work as a tool he can use when he is in need. The gods are not all powerful outside their own realms in the afterlife, they need faithful worshipers to carry out their work. Omastein sees promise in you and a chance for Eleknar’s redemption, to cast aside the weakest of the Infernal Crowns for the strongest. Omastein can offer you so much more than that pathetic weakling, that pathetic excuse for a deity is no match for Omastein’s might. It is known. Just ask your wench priestess!”
Gorthomal and Rivia locked eyes, hate evident in both of them. However, Rivia did not object to the claim.
Trey took note of that. “... Rivia, is that true? Is Omastein really that much more powerful than Alkir? Answer me truthfully, that’s an order.”
Rivia’s nose scrunched up and for a second there a vein popped out, then she clutched her temple like she was trying to stave off a headache. “Omastein is known to be stronger in some ways… he has more worshipers, more legions, and gods draw on worshipers for power.”
“HAH!” Gorthomal roared in victory like a maniac and stamped his foot.
“But that does not mean she is not the better choice!” Rivia exclaimed hastily, waving her hands in front of her like she was trying to ward off a bad omen. “The most obvious reason is right there in front of you! A soul binding contract is a terrible thing and is not standard for even his own worshipers! It is forbidden by the All Spirit for the gods to do this! It is taboo! Ask yourself, why would Omastein create a contract specifically for you? What does he have to gain from this? Why would he do this? It is because he does not want you to realize you made a terrible mistake by choosing him and would make you his slave forever to keep you from turning back!”
“ENOUGH!” screeched the older summoner as dark mana flared about him in a rage. “QUIET YOURSELF, INSOLENT WENCH! OR I WILL SEND YOU TO THE AFTERLIFE RIGHT HERE AND NOW!”
Trey’s greatsword flipped around and slammed into the ground between them, sending sparks of chaos mana screaming into the cavernous room and putting everyone on edge. Gorthomal took a step back, hissed, and then calmed himself. Trey was pretty nervous himself, but he wasn’t about to have one of his most valuable minions killed over a dispute that in his mind was utterly insignificant.
“Neither one of you are going to convince me one way or the other.” Trey held up his hand and brought Talsh’Noc’Un back from the crevice it had created in the stone floor. He had to treat this like a game, because in many ways - that’s what it was. A game of life and death. Whichever route was the one suited to best meet his ends, to empower him the most, he’d take it. “I will decide merely based on which of them can give me the better deal… tell me more about what happens when I pray at these altars.”
Gorthomal, who’d been seething, quickly became elated at the news of Trey’s open-mindedness. “You would choose Omastein if he offered you… a better deal?”
“Answer the question.” Trey snapped in annoyance. He was pissed off that Gorthomal had lied to get him here and really didn’t understand the reasoning behind it, but now that he was here - he might as well have a better idea about what was going on.
The old man slowly nodded. “If you pray at an altar and the god accepts you as worthy, they will offer you their subclass in exchange for your loyalty and patronage. Each god has their own subclass designed to enhance the warlock or summoner that offers themselves to the patron god, and each subclass is described in writing at the base of each statue.”
“So why even bother with the contract if they only offer a subclass to their followers?” Trey frowned. “Wouldn’t I have to offer myself to them anyways?”
Gorthomal bent his head down, shook it, and sighed loudly. “I really wish you’d just read the contract, boy. This contract only makes your decision irreversible and gives you incentives to choose Omastein over the other two. Please… just read it. It is an astoundingly good offer…”
The old man held out the flickering parchment, and despite Rivia’s brief angry squeal - Trey did take it. Scanning it for the first time in detail, he saw that it was indeed a very good deal. Better yet, it was straight to the point.
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I, Trey Bon, accept Omastein, Sire of Devils, as my sole patron god for all of time and eternity. I will not worship any other god or goddess for as long as I live, nay I shant worship them even in death. I will do my best to please the god of gods and king of the underworld by shedding the blood of his enemies and laying waste to their civilizations. I will breed terror within their ranks and lead a genocide in Omastein’s name. To this I swear my soul, and offer it in contract as a soul-binding word. In return, I will receive the following:
- A custom made Titan-tier armor piece or trinket
- 5 control slots
- Two succubi concubines of your choosing from Omastein’s personal harem to add to your minions
- A direct means of contact with Omastein, Sire of Devils, his guidance, and a large amount of his favor
- Access to Omastein’s job listings and exchange altars where you may trade in deeds for items, wealth, minions, and power
- Access to Omastein’s library, a wealth of forbidden knowledge
- The infernal summoner subclass of ‘Dark Apostle,’ a ranged caster specialization which includes the following: for every 2 intelligence or 2 wisdom stat points applied, receive 1 willpower. +20% damage increase for all spells AND weapons requiring an intelligence or faith stat to wield. +10% range bonus for all casting. +10% casting speed for all casting. Opens up 4 additional spell slots. +120 MP, -10% for all spell cooldowns. Opens up the skill tree ‘Dark Apostle.’
To accept this contract, sign below in blood and present it to Omastein’s altar as an offering.
_____________________
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Trey whistled loudly at the offer. It was no joke. Every single one of those things Trey would likely put to good use… and the Dark Apostle subclass was particularly nice. It looked like his normal summoner class but amped up on steroids for casting abilities.
“An amplification for spellcasting I see. Did you take this one Gorthomal?”
The old man snorted. “No… I have not achieved my subclass yet. If I’m able to take you into the fold though… I get to take my own. Obtaining you for Omastein is the contract I have acquired for myself in order to obtain the ‘Dark Apostle.’ I did not receive any of the other offers though. Your case is unique… given you’ve bonded to Eleknar. So incentives were added on top of the subclass in order to persuade you to see reason.”
Rivia was getting outwardly nervous as she looked the contract over. She opened her mouth, but shut it again when she couldn’t think of anything to say.
Trey nodded towards Gorthomal and thoughtfully looked the contract over again. “It does… look good. Very persuasive. But… What are the subclasses for the other two? What are they about?”
Again Gorthomal snorted, this time shrugging indifferently like they weren’t important. “Jehema, that dragon over there? He offers a subclass that relates to dexterity and speed builds, an assassin-summoner combination. It isn’t bad, but doesn’t give any upgrades to spellcasting which is what summoners and warlocks truly are. Alkir… her subclass is easily the worst. It emphasizes melee combat, something you should have your minions do for you as you stay at a safe distance. It is foolish to have an army at your command only to place yourself at the front line.”
A sudden flash of light from Trey’s right blinded him momentarily. He brought his hands up to cover his eyes, as did many of the others, before the light cleared. Blinking to regain his orientation, he soon saw Rivia holding a parchment eerily similar to the one that Gorthomal had given him.
In fact... It looked almost identical, giving Trey pause with an expression of surprise.
Rivia was equally surprised to be holding it, but the demoness took no time in quickly scanning it before she cupped her mouth with one hand and began to stream tears of delight. “Master! Master come look! Alkir has delivered to you a contract of her own! She… she must be watching us even now as we speak!”
Gorthomal’s eyes widened and he stood gaping at the newly forged flickering contract in the priestess’ hands. Trey did the same for another couple seconds, slapped himself and reached out to take the new parchment. Silently reading it to himself, he quickly became glad he hadn’t read it out loud.
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I, Trey Bon, accept Alkir, Mistress of Darkness as my primary patron goddess for all of time and eternity. I am hereby allowed to help explore other avenues of worship for my minions and friends if needed with the exception of Omastein or other deities Alkir may be at war with, but only as secondaries to the wishes of Alkir. I will do my best to carry out Alkir’s deeds and help her restore her former glory. I will reunite Alkir with Eleknar, and in time accept Eleknar’s bonding fully and completely. I will realize that I have already been graced with Alkir’s help since the first day I arrived in Oblivion, as it was I that was chosen to land at Drahst Pillar where Elknar was kept and it was I that happened upon Talsh’Noc’Un through Alkir’s guidance. I will enslave or kill all of those who dare to oppose Alkir, lay waste to their cities, and feast on the corpses of their kin. I will start by killing the summoner Gorthomal where he stands for his insolence, display his corpse at Alkir’s altar, and offer his soul to Alkir as proof of my fealty. I will then continue to serve in her name until the day that I meet her face to face, for it is that day that all will be explained. To this I swear on my honor, without any additional soul-binding. In return, I will receive the following:
- Rivia will receive a Priestess’ Pledge, ascending your minion’s abilities for the faith and devotion she has shown Alkir
- 2 control slots
- The infernal summoner subclass of ‘Horror Crusader,’ a berserker-caster combination which can be used in conjunction with normal summoner fighting styles and includes the following: For every 2 Strength, 2 Vitality, or 2 Endurance stat points placed, receive 1 Willpower. +20% damage increase for weapons requiring a strength stat to wield. Opens up 4 sacred art slots. +300 HP, +50 SP, +8% overall defense on for all armor worn. Opens up the skill tree ‘Horror Crusader.’ Unlocks the Insanity Stat. Unlocks the ‘Rage’ bar that increases all damage output, pain resistance and additional temporary insanity the higher it goes. +2% insanity as a baseline for choosing this subclass.
- 1 random sacred art from the Horror Crusader skill tree
- Acquire a new physical attribute: ‘Unholy Script of Domination,’ which will allow you to dominate weaker-willed individuals and create new thralls without ritual. This script will also give a 17% bonus to the chance of dominating demons and fallen. Very high cooldown to create charges for thralls. Can store up to 3 charges at a time.
- A summoner seed obtained as a favor from Jehema, The Wrathmaker, that will be implanted into your companion Ashe… allowing her to sign a contract with him in the future without having to be present upon an unholy site dedicated to us - and make the transition into the ‘Silent Nightmare’ dexterity-based infernal summoner subclass. This will only occur when she acquires the necessary attributes, and realizes her true destiny does not dwell as a rogue, but of a black magics practitioner. She has the potential to become one of the greatest… and good friends are hard to come by.
Betrayal of Alkir will result in the removal of the subclass Horror Crusader as well as Rivia’s Pledge.
To accept this contract, sign below in blood and present it to Alkir’s altar as an offering… though this may be done after killing the bastard summoner Gorthomal standing directly in front of you. A word of advice, young one... you cannot kill him in a fair fight. Good luck.
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Trey balked at the written words. Alkir was claiming here that it was she who was responsible for leading him to Eleknar? It was she who had guided him to find Talsh’Noc’Un? She’s taking credit for all that?
And she was telling him that Ashe was destined to become an infernal summoner too?
He scratched his head and gave Gorthomal a brief sideways glance, but tried not to make it too obvious.
Alkir’s offer was quite good as well… Killing Gorthomal was a bit of a catch he hadn’t expected, but thinking about how Alkir was one of the Infernal Crowns - he couldn’t really be that surprised given Gorthomal’s disrespect directly in front of her altar.
There were five questions he had to answer here: number one, how did the contracts compare? And number two… was Gorthomal really a friend, or would he try to kill Trey if Trey declined Gorthomal’s offer? Trey could only guess at the latter given his violent outrage with Rivia when she’d argued her case. Maybe there was some way to test his theory? The third question to ask was... what would Eleknar think if he really was Alkir’s ally, and Trey took Omastein’s offer? Would Eleknar be angry? He really hoped he never had to deal with that creep again but he knew that wasn’t likely going to be the case, both contracts were based on the idea that Trey was Eleknar’s Heir… a concept Trey didn’t fully understand yet but nevertheless was the source of the attention being drawn his way. The fourth question to ask was did he really want to take Omastein’s offer with no way of turning back after that soul contract was signed? It seemed like a pretty big deal. Then, lastly, if Omastein was more powerful than Alkir… did choosing her put Trey at a disadvantage and leave him to deal with Omastein’s ire?
If he took Alkir’s offer, he wouldn’t get the two succubus concubines. To his knowledge succubi were often great casters, usually very attractive, and their voices alone could be used for crowd control. It would be a real benefit to have them and for more reasons than just fighting. Taking Alkir’s offer would also mean he wouldn't gain access to the forbidden knowledge Omastein was talking about… though Trey couldn’t be sure how valuable Omastein’s library was anyways. It was likely a very valuable thing to have given it was listed on his offer, but nevertheless Trey couldn’t be sure.
Then… there was the offer for a ‘summoner seed,’ allowing Ashe to obtain her own summoner subclass. According to Gorthomal, subclasses were incredibly hard to get - hell, even the old summoner hadn’t gotten one yet. That, and Gorthomal had said there were only a few places on the face of this world that you could obtain them… surely, this was something Trey should think about.
He shot Gorthomal a brief glance. The older summoner was fidgeting nervously, just as nervously as Rivia was now that there were two contracts in play - while the two of them gave each other hateful stares inbetween trying to figure out what Trey was thinking.
He went back to comparing the two contracts. Omastein had more free control slots to gain, likely due to the succubi he was offering. Comparing the ‘Dark Apostle’ subclass Omastein offered to the ‘Horror Crusader’ subclass Alkir had, Trey was a little torn.
Thinking back to all that fight’s he’d ever had, Trey used a relatively even amount of fighting styles between up close physical combat versus casting magics at his enemies. He likely used a little bit more magic than he did his sword though, and Omastein’s subclass ‘Dark Apostle’ emphasized not only more magic-based damage, but also its range and cooldowns.
That was huge.
Alkir’s ‘Horror Crusader’ made him more viable as a frontliner though, and that was something he often found himself doing – putting himself on the line in front of… well, mostly everyone in his party. Now that he had Karus helping him tank, maybe that wouldn’t be as needed anymore… but that wasn’t likely. On top of everything else he really had to consider Talsh’Noc’Un… the weapon was on an entirely different level – literally a thing of legend and one of a kind. Not capitalizing on it would be a serious mistake and Trey’d already begun putting points into strength. In fact, that’s likely why Alkir chose to lead him to Talsh’Noc’Un in the first place… if what she said about leading him to it was true. Now that he’d thought more about it, didn’t it make sense to take the ‘Horror Crusader’ subclass? It would feed right into his strength build and also give him willpower points for more minions as he did. The HP boost it gave him would over double his health and the equipped armor bonus was also really nice. He hadn’t ever used heavy armor before, but with this subclass his decision on that subject may very well change.
And what about this insanity stat? Didn’t Talsh’Noc’Un already give him a percentage of insanity due to its thirsting trait? He pulled up the weapon’s status page again just to make sure he wasn’t going… well, crazy.
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Talsh’Noc’Un, Sword of Ruin
Item Tier: (17) World
Damage: 4059
On Hit Effect: +12% additional chaos damage, 3% mana drain on enemy’s total mana
Bonuses: +70 Strength, +182 Vitality, +44 Dexterity, +170 Speed, +69 Intelligence, +48 Wisdom, +93 Willpower
Requirements: Minionize this weapon to wield it at bare minimum potential, dealing 10%
of normal damage without bonuses. Requires 710 Strength and 138 Wisdom to
wield at full potential.
Durability: 12,000/12,000
Specials:
1 - Living Blade: Talsh’Noc’Un evolves and grows with its master, registers as a
demonic class minion. Occasionally for souls the wielder has struggled yet
prevailed to defeat, gain an additional damage rating point and one
randomized stat added to the bonus categories that already exist. Evolutions
also occasionally occur with this blade after enormously challenging victories.
2 - Berserk: Tremendously increases aggression. Vast but temporary increase to
strength, speed, dexterity, intelligence, and faith. +180 to full body physical
and magic resistance. Immune to all debuffs. Lasts until out of combat.
Cooldown: Long
3 - Obliterate: Empower next attack, explodes upon impact. Damage is variable
based upon mana availability from the wielder. Cooldown: Medium.
4 - Thirsting: The longer the wielder owns this weapon, the more the wielder will
thirst for power and violence. Increasing thirsting level increases all damage
output by the wielder, but also adds insanity and aggression.
>Current Thirsting Level: 1 (+5% total damage output, +1% insanity and aggression)
5 - Autoregulation - This weapon repairs itself, increasing lost durability over
time and is able to manipulate its own structure to the preference of its
wielder.
6 - Infernal Transcendance - Talsh’Noc’Un is able to select infernal creatures and
evolve them into something slightly greater. Target’s soul must be ready to
undertake transition, otherwise death may occur. High cooldown.
7 - Flight of Mechiaa - This cursed blade is able to fly about of its own free will for
limited amounts of time.
8 - Creature Compartments - This weapon has 5 grand soulstones built into it
that are altered to better contain infernal creatures, and is able to store these
creatures for later minionization.
Captured Creatures in Storage: 2/5 grand soul stones filled
- Angelic Dread Berserker, Fallen Archangel
- Dark Djinn, Fallen
- Empty
- Empty
- Empty
9 - Abyssal Key - Unlock the lost realm of the Abyss with this blade. Traverse
between the Abyss and your realm of origin at will via portal upon a command
to your weapon.
Opinion of you: Content
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Choosing Omastein’s contract would allow Trey direct access to speak with this god… which was kind of cool in itself and something Trey was very sure was a rarity in this fucked up game universe. Then there was also Omastein’s job-and-rewards system. It didn’t explain much here but it looked like a very unique opportunity from the sound of things. It would also give Trey a sense of purpose and a way to grow without dealing with shitheads here in the lawless lands who sometimes showed up empty handed after their jobs were complete.
He felt a light touch on his forearm and phased back into reality. Rivia was still looking at him with those beautiful puppy-dog eyes - and without words, begging him to choose Alkir. When did he start giving a damn about what she thought? He didn’t really know, truth be told, but it’d likely been a while ago. So he did take her opinion into consideration… even if she had tried killing him back in Oblivion, and had participated in sacrificing the people he’d tried to save.
She’d become a very valuable asset and a dependable one at that. What would a priestess-goddess pledge do to Rivia? What did it mean when it said it would change and improve her? He had conversed with Rivia on the subject before, but with only minor amounts of detail. He really had no idea what would happen if a priest or priestess received a pledge from their chosen deity, but the idea of her growing even stronger definitely appealed to him.
Then there was the matter of Gorthomal… he didn’t want to kill him. Gorthomal had been extremely useful, even friendly, and he’d be a good mentor… but Trey was also calling into question whether or not Gorthomal had been doing this just to get him here to this moment. To try and make Trey sign Omastein’s contract after he’d lied about where they were going and what they were doing. Why’d he lied? What was the point? It didn’t make sense…
And would he even be ABLE to kill Gorthomal?
Trey’s eyes locked onto one of the cages, then another and another. The creatures there… they couldn’t survive down here without food. In fact, looking more closely at these cages, they seemed out of place… had they been put there recently? Were they really part of this ‘dungeon’ like Gorthomal had spoken about?
Had Gorthomal put them there himself? Or was this just paranoia talking?
Sithis purred into the back of Trey’s mind. ‘Look.’
Sithis brought Trey’s attention to one of Gorthomal’s imps. The little red demon had perched itself along an out-of-place rock just back at the entrance, anxiously looking between something on the ground and his master Gorthomal.
‘Do you see it?’
Trey didn’t see what Sithis was talking about only for another half second – then he spotted it. A thin, long wire was coming out from behind the rock and trailing along the wall into the dark… towards those very cages Trey’d been suspicious of earlier. He had to consciously make an effort not to stare or grow angry, but it did give him his answer.
Gorthomal was setting him up, and if that old bastard didn’t get the answer he was looking for… Trey was likely mincemeat. What a mother fucker. There was no way out of this now… he had to choose one of the two contracts and stick to it. Either sell his soul to Omastein, or kill Gorthomal to take up Alkir on her offer. Would he be able to kill Gorthomal even with the element of surprise? Did he even want to? The truth was he really didn’t want to.
Trey frowned, feeling a little bad about his choice, and slowly handed Rivia the contract that Alkir had presented him. He saw Rivia’s features fall into despair as he shook his head. “I’m sorry Rivia… I’m choosing Omastein.”
"YESSS!” Gorthomal hollered at the top of his lungs and pounded his fists into the air as if he was young again.
Rivia however, began to cry. Dropping to her knees and clutching Alkir’s contract to her chest as if it were a sacred parchment, she began to silently sob with her head hung low. Trey’s heart fell just watching her, and for the first time since meeting her - he found that he actually was valuing her more for who she was as opposed to looking at her like a fuck-toy. It was sad to see her like this, but it couldn’t be helped. He had to follow through with his decision.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Atharost softly nudged his friend with a stern gaze. Folding his arms, the ifrit raised one eyebrow while appraising the delighted old man a few feet away. “Soul-binding contracts are not something to scoff at… it may look good now, but you could be falling into a trap.”
Trey pursed his lips and shrugged. “Not much of a choice I have…”
Gorthomal flung his left arm around Trey’s shoulders, laughing all the while as he laughed and hollered. “You won’t regret this, boy! Omastein will be beyond pleased with you for choosing him, and I’ll be rewarded for being the one that took you into our flock! We MUST celebrate, but first we should approach Omastein’s altar. Come!”
Excitedly motioning for Trey to follow, Gorthomal and his minions began chattering excitedly with one another. The three statues looming over them grew closer while Trey walked, and another look back clarified that the only one who’d stayed behind was Rivia. The demoness priestess was still silently sobbing, clutching Alkir’s contract, tears flowing off of her face and nose onto the stone beneath - with each act causing her body to shudder against the flickering parchment she held to her chest. He was surprised yet again to find out that he felt pangs of guilt just watching her, and again wondered what had changed in the past weeks to make him give so much of a shit about how she felt.
“This is so neat!” Ashe exclaimed as she came to a trot beside her friend, long fox tail wagging out behind her. “So you’re getting a subclass?! I didn’t even know those were a thing! Makes me wonder if rogues can specialize somehow… Mind if I take a look?”
Trey grinned and handed her Omastein’s contract, the one he was supposed to sign in his own blood soon enough. Looking it over with furrowed eyebrows she nodded in approval and grinned back.
“That’s awesome Trey, you’re really putting in progress. We’re going to be unstoppable!”
Ashe’s giddy demeanor uplifted the others as they laughed and joked with one another. By the time they’d made it to Omastein’s intimidating demonic middle statue, even Karus and Juila were having a good time. Juila was still a little shaken by Gorthomals attempt to sacrifice her earlier, but she kept away from the old man and would occasionally glance Trey’s way in appreciation. Only Rivia, who’d been left behind near the entrance, was downtrodden.
The statue of Omastein was a lot bigger than it looked like originally. It was many stories high and half as wide with the wingspan stretched out. The malicious devil’s smile that Trey was all too familiar with on his own face stared down at them from above.
Gorthomal put up a hand to keep the others at bay and pointed towards a circled pentagram a few yards across just in front of the giant statue with a grin Trey’s way. “Come, young summoner. It is time.”
Trey adjusted his positioning so Talsh’Noc’Un rested a little bit more comfortably on his back and followed the other summoner a little ways forward. He stopped at the edge of the circle and watched the runes around it come to life. An intricate display of green and red flowed out across the stone and highlighted the ceremonial altar’s centerpiece. He took in a slow, deep inhalation of air and began reading Omastein’s contract again.
“Very good, now just kneel in the center of the circle.” Gorthomal excitedly pointed at their feet and pulled a small dagger out from his robes. “You can use this to draw blood and begin-”
Talsh’Noc’Un swept up and into Gorthomal’s head, ripping it apart with the force of a hurricane as chaos magic roared along the giant blade. The magical impact proceeded to crawl down into Gorthomal’s chest cavity, ripping his body inside-out and sending bits of charred body parts scattering across the floor.
The All Spirit’s voice rang true into Trey’s ears. “Your hidden attack was a critical strike, +54% damage. You have gained XP. You have gained 1 assassination level. You have gained 3 overall combat levels."
"You have failed the quest: The Forgotten Dungeon - Gorthomal has died.”
